The present invention relates to articles for releasably holding tools and the methods of using these articles. It is especially concerned with toolholders and support members wherein the support member has a bore for receiving the shank of the toolholder and the toolholder has a cutting insert seat on its forward end. Such articles are used in the cutting and shaping of workpieces where it is important that the toolholder be held by the tool support member in a rigid manner so that both movement and vibration are minimized during the metalcutting operation.
Many devices in the prior art have proven to be successful in this regard and are exemplified by McCreery U.S. Pat. No. 3,498,653; McCray et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,135,418; Heaton et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,197,771; and Friedline U.S. Pat. No. 4,350,463. The foregoing devices are concerned with the use of ball-like locking elements to hold the shank of a toolholder in the bore of the tool support member.
However, there is always a need for improved toolholders, support members and locking members that provide a greater degree of rigidity during metalcutting operations such that a single assembly of toolholder, support member and locking members can be used in the widest possible variety of machining operations to provide a given surface finish in a heavier cut or a finer surface finish for a given depth of cut and feed rate.